Hear Me Out
by kellegirl
Summary: Cloud never thought he deserved the Promised Lands, but Sephiroth showed him otherwise. short drabble. rated for reference to sexual activity.


_Me: This is just something that popped into my head while I was looking at some art over on Deviant Art. Specifically Zen-kiss by siguredo. My interpretation of the Lifestream is not meant to be a credible version of the afterlife, please don't get upset over it. It's just some random thought that drifted through my head. Story is titled after the song I was listening to; Hear me Out by Frou Frou._

_Disclaimer:__ yeah, really don't own._

_Warning:__ Hinting of sexual activity, light yaoi, my views on what the Lifestream may be like._

XxXxXxXxXx

Cloud never really thought about what The Promised Lands really were, never had any reason to. He accepted Aeris' explanation, her story of how it would be a wonderful beautiful place, but never pondered it. Such things weren't meant for him anyway. He was a fighter, a killer. He had taken lives and didn't deserve that beauty. There were times, late at night, when he would lie in his bed above Seventh Heaven and think of what laid in store for him once he entered the Lifestream, never once did he consider finding the Promised Lands. There was too much blood on his hands.

Inevitably time wore on, battles came and went, more blood was shed. It didn't surprise Cloud that he didn't really age like his friends, not after what Hojo had done to him. Eventually it was just Nanaki, Vincent, and him, AVALANCH lost to the flows of time, to the Promised Land. Cloud would hear them in the Lifestream, gently wishing him happiness he knew he didn't deserve. Vincent left after a while, silently retreating into solitude as time finally wore on Cloud's body. Nanaki and his pups were the only ones there when the Planet's chosen warrior finally slipped into the Lifestream.

Cloud smiled softly, eyes still closed as he drifted. It was so peaceful, so quiet. There was a soft caress against his cheek and the blond opened his eyes lazily. No one was there, but Cloud didn't feel the crushing solitude that he always had. Gentle ripples of energy wove around his body, green, blue, and purest white weaving together like water. Sitting up in the flow the fallen warrior looked around with an almost sleepy gaze. It really was almost like he was surrounded by an ocean, cascading around him with such a softness it never could be.

"I've been waiting," a voice said softly.

Twisting around Cloud froze; sapphire eyes wide. Sephiroth strode towards him, seemingly on top of the sea of Lifestream. The blond made no move towards the silver haired man, simply sat there and waited. "So I didn't deserve to go?" he asked when Sephiroth stood in front of him.

"Didn't deserve to go where?" the silver haired man smiled softly, sitting beside the blond.

"To the Promised Land," Cloud said as if it were the single most obvious thing ever, a small frown crossing his features.

"What makes you think you didn't go there?" Sephiroth's voice was kind, no hint of Jenova's madness in it.

"You're here."

Emerald eyes stared at Cloud for a moment, obviously startled. Then Sephiroth burst into a rich laugh, his head tilted back as he chuckled. "Jenova wouldn't be welcome," he finally said, "I was just a puppet."

Cloud looked at the silver haired male for a moment before turning his gaze to the vast expanse of swirling energy before him. "You said you were waiting," he prompted.

"Yes."

Tilting his head to the side so he could regard Sephiroth, the blond waited. The silver haired male just smiled softly, his own gaze shifting to take in the Lifestream. "What for?" Cloud finally prompted.

"You."

Now Cloud turned to fully regard the smiling man. He couldn't help but wonder if he had ever actually seen Sephiroth smile like that before. He remembered the cruel smiles when Jenova held him as her puppet, remembered a few sad quirks of the lip before Nibelheim, the soft yet bitter looks the few times before that, back when a cadet thought he could give the General some happiness by surrendering his body. But no, never a true smile, never the look of utter peace that held sway over Sephiroth's features now.

"Why would you wait for me?" Cloud said bitterly, his eyes moving away from the silver haired male, "Why would you ever want to see me again?"

"Do you remember what would happen?" Sephiroth said softly, "Before everything went so wrong?"

Cloud turned to him, sapphire eyes almost dead. He didn't dare hope that Sephiroth was talking about…no he couldn't be.

"I remember this little cadet, so scared and alone," the silver haired man tilted his head back so his flowing locks fell in waves, "He dared to approach me when no one except an excitable First would. That was probably why he approached me; he was friends with that First."

Cloud closed his eyes; clenching his hands into fists as he listened to Sephiroth speak. Memories that he had thought trapped away came flooding back, burning into his soul and reminding him of his failure, of why he didn't deserve the Promised Land.

"I never got to tell him," the silky baritone said softly, "How much it meant to me. How I appreciated it. That little cadet gave everything to me, his company, body, heart, all of it. I don't know what would have happened if he hadn't. Things went pretty bad even with his attentions, but they would have been so much worse without. I wouldn't have been allowed to enter the Promised Land if not for him."

Cloud looked up sharply; sapphire eyes wide as tears silently rolled down his cheeks. Sephiroth was looking right at him, emerald eyes seeming to look into his very soul. Cloud almost chuckled when he realized that, in a way, he was. Biting his lip, the blond looked away. "I should have saved you," he said softly, "Back then; I should have been able to save you. I failed…I don't deserve the Promised Land."

A soft hand cupped his cheek, forcing Cloud to look around at Sephiroth once again. "You did," the silver haired man said as he leaned forward, "And you do."

Before Cloud could respond silky lips covered his own, Sephiroth's scent washing over him.

XxXxXxXxXx

_Me: Yeah, it's short and really different than my other stuff, but I like it. I don't know why, but I just felt the urge to write it. So just a sweet drabble. Please comment._


End file.
